Live Updates
Middle East Eye, Jun 26 2024
Evening Recap
Here are some of the day’s key developments:
- Gaza’s death toll has risen to 37,718
- Israel demolished 17 houses in the occupied West Bank in one day
- Israeli strike on Beit Lahiya Beit Lahiya, northern Gaza has risen to 15 people
- More than 60% of people in Europe believe the EU should suspend free trade with Israel, a poll shows
- Turkish President Erdogan said that his country stands in solidarity with Lebanon
- Houthi’s and Islamic Resistance in Iraq target ship in port of Haifa
- The US is maintaining a pause on a shipment of heavy munitions for Israel
- Ben Gvir says he has ordered a further reduction in the amount of food offered to Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails
- At least five Lebanese civilians injured by Israeli attack in southern Lebanon
At least five Lebanese civilians injured by Israeli attack in southern Lebanon
An Israeli strike on a two-storey building in the town of Nabatiyeh in southern Lebanon on Wednesday night wounded five people, Lebanese state media reported. According to medical sources, the five injured civilians as well as nine others suffering from smoke inhalation have been transported to the hospital. Civil defense forces are reportedly working to remove the rubble and locate missing persons.
Israeli minister orders food reduction for Palestinian prisoners
Israel’s National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir says he has ordered a further reduction in the amount of food offered to Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails. After Oct 7, Ben Gvir closed prison canteens and kitchens, leaving Palestinian detainees entirely reliant on the prisons themselves for food. Following dozens of testimonies from security prisoners and detainees describing that the Prison Service has significantly reduced their food rations, to the point of starvation, causing them to shed dozens of kilograms, a petition was filed by the Association for Civil Rights in Israel (ACRI). The petition is being heard on Wednesday by the High Court of Justice. In a letter to the petitioners, Ben Gvir wrote that the reduction of food given to prisoners was meant for deterrent purposes. the letter reads:
There is no starvation, but my policy does call for reducing conditions, including food and calories. The changes in incarceration conditions, including the changes in food, are directly affecting deterrence, with potential assailants abstaining from committing terrorist actions so as not to be put in ‘the occupation’s prisons.’
ACRI has challenged the food restrictions in court, arguing they amount to a policy of starvation.
Canadian university sues its own students over encampment for Palestine
The University of Waterloo in Canada has filed a lawsuit against its students for continuing its pro-Palestine encampment urging the university to disclose and divest from Israel. According to reports in the Canadian press, administrators were suing the encampment for $1.5m in damages including “trespass, damage to property, intimidation and ejectment.” The university alleges the student encampment has damaged the school’s reputation, driven up administrative and operational costs for the university and depreciated the university’s property values. Protesters are being urged to disband the camp and vacate immediately, as well as return school property to its original state before the encampment. The legal injunction was filed on Tuesday and comes several days after administrators issued a trespassing notice to the encampment. It also comes two weeks after the university agreed to be more transparent about companies it invests in as part of the disclose and divest demands made by the student movement. Read more: Canadian university sues its own students over encampment for Palestine.
Only a fraction of Gaza aid from Cyprus distributed: USAID
Only 1 kt of the 7 kt of humanitarian aid shipped to war-ravaged Gaza from Cyprus has been distributed because of what USAID officials have called “insecurity.” The remaining 6 kt was on shore in secure conditions but has yet to be distributed, the officials said on Wednesday. The sea corridor linking Cyprus with the Gaza Strip opened in March, delivering a fraction of the basic supplies needed by the 2.3m Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.
Munitions shipment to Israel still on hold by the US
The US is maintaining a pause on a shipment of heavy munitions for Israel, senior US officials told visiting Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant on Wednesday. One official said that the two governments remain in discussions about a shipment of heavy bombs, which was paused by Biden in early May over concerns the weapons could cause more Palestinian deaths in Gaza after Israel began its invasion of Rafah.
Erdogan confirms support for Lebanon amid growing tensions with Israel
Amid escalating cross-border attacks between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon, Erdogan said on Wednesday that Turkey stands in solidarity with Lebanon. He also called on regional countries to support Beirut. The rise in tensions have stoked fears of an all out Israel-Hezbollah war as shelling across Israel’s northern border has led to the evacuation of tens of thousands of people from areas on both sides of the frontier.
Yemen’s Houthis and Islamic Resistance in Iraq target ship port of Haifa
Yemen’s Houthis said on Wednesday they targeted a ship in the Israeli port of Haifa in a joint military operation with the Islamic Resistance in Iraq. The operation targeted the MSC Manzanillo, the Houthi’s military spokesman Yahya Sari said in a televised speech.
Activists and tech workers disrupt keynote speeches at Amazon summit
Palestine solidarity activists and tech workers disrupted keynote speeches at Wednesday’s Amazon Web Services Summit to protest the alliance between Big Tech and Israel’s military, known as Project Nimbus. Referred to as the “deadly alliance” between Big Tech and Israel’s military, Project Nimbus is a $1.2b contract with Amazon and Google to provide cloud services for the Israeli military and government, facilitating surveillance of and unlawful data collection on Palestinians and the expansion of Israel’s illegal settlements in the occupied West Bank. This past spring, Amazon and Google renewed the Project Nimbus contract, months after Israel’s bombing campaign on Gaza started. The No Tech for Apartheid campaign stated on its website:
Amazon and Google’s collaboration with Israeli apartheid is part of a larger pattern of Big Tech fueling state violence across the globe.
Wednesday’s disruption follows a wave of protests and actions led by Amazon and Google tech workers, STEM students and allies since the war on Gaza broke out on Oct 7.
Israel demolishes 17 homes in the occupied West Bank in one day
Seventeen structures have been destroyed by Israeli forces throughout the occupied West Bank today, WAFA reported. The demolished houses include four east of Jericho, eleven homes and other structures in the Masafer Yatta community, south of Hebron, one home in Beitillu village, west of Ramallah and another in the Silwan neighbourhood in occupied East Jerusalem. This month alone, Israeli forces demolished 47 Palestinian structures, including 35 inhabited homes, in the occupied West Bank.
Israeli parliament approves bill to make ‘Al-Jazeera law’ permanent
The Israeli parliament has approved the preliminary stage of a bill that would make permanent currently temporary powers held by the Communications Minister to shut down foreign media outlets. The “Al-Jazeera Law” as it has been branded, due to the Qatari media outlet being the primary target, was passed in April and allowed for the closure of outlets in Israel that risked “harm to the state’s security.” The new bill will cancel the original Jul 31 expiration date and make the law permanent.
New German citizens required to affirm Israel’s right to exist
Applicants for German citizenship will be required to explicitly affirm Israel’s right to exist under a new citizenship law which came into effect on Tuesday. The new law shortened the number of years that a person must have lived in Germany in order to obtain a passport, from eight to five years. It will also allow first-generation migrants to be dual citizens. As part of the shake-up, new questions were added to the country’s citizenship test, including about Judaism and Israel’s right to exist. The German interior ministry confirmed on Tuesday:
New test questions have been added on the topics of antisemitism, the right of the state of Israel to exist, and Jewish life in Germany.
Read more: New German citizens required to affirm Israel’s right to exist.
Gaza death toll rises to 37,718
Gaza’s health ministry said that 60 Palestinians were killed in Israeli attacks on the enclave in the past 24 hours, bringing the total to 37,718 killed since Oct 7. An additional 86,377 people have been wounded, 140 of them in the past 24 hours.
Turkey expresses solidarity with Lebanon in light of Israel tensions
Erdogan said on Wednesday that his country stands in solidarity with Lebanon in light of growing tensions between Hezbollah and Israel. He told lawmakers of his ruling Justice and Development party (AKP):
Israel is now setting its sights on Lebanon and we see that Western powers behind the scenes are patting Israel on the back and even supporting them.
Erdogan said Netanyahu’s war plans will “lead to a great disaster” and called on regional countries to also support Beirut.
German foreign minister says Hezbollah and Israel in danger of ‘slipping into’ war
After meeting Lebanese and Israeli leaders in Beirut and Jerusalem, German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock warned on Germany’s Deutschlandfunk state radio:
Another war would mean a regional escalation on a scale that we can hardly imagine. More rockets are flying. Large parts on both sides do not want this war, but we are slipping into it. While Lebanese leaders seem to agree, they do not have any effective access on the ground, not even to Hezbollah. A ceasefire in Gaza would calm the situation between Hezbollah and Israel.
61% in Europe support suspending free trade with Israel: Poll
More than 60% of people in Europe believe the EU should suspend free trade with Israel enabled by the EU-Israel Association Agreement and uphold human rights, a poll released by corporate watchdog Eko shows. The polling, which was conducted by YouGov from Jun 5-10, found broad public support for the idea in all surveyed countries. Even in Hungary, Israel’s staunchest European ally, only 39% of respondents opposed the suspension of trade with Israel. The results are even lower in France (29%), the Netherlands (27%) and Belgium (23%).
How Gaza became the final straw for UK Labour’s Corbyn wing
On polling day on Dec 12 2019, activist and writer Sonali Bhattacharyya was out in the rain until the evening, knocking on doors to get people out to vote. She recalled:
I’d been there since morning. I remember coming back to the local Labour party office just as the exit poll was dropping. And we were all in tears. I put a lot of hours in, sort of seems quite unthinkable now, actually. I’ve never been a party political person, I never thought I’d be active in the Labour Party, never really had much truck with electoral politics, never really thought that it was worth putting time into.
Bhattacharyya joined Labour after its defeat in the 2015 general election, as the situation seemed “desperate.” But she quickly worked out that the party was “impenetrable” for campaigners like her. Read more: How Gaza became the final straw for UK Labour’s Corbyn wing.
Israeli strike on Beit Lahiya kills 15
The death toll from Israel’s strike on the Abu Awad family home in Beit Lahiya, northern Gaza has risen to 15 people, Al Jazeera reports. It was previously reported that four people had died in the strike. Rescuers are still trying to pull victims from under the rubble.
Israeli drone strike kills sixth MSF member in Gaza
MSF have announced the killing of their sixth staff member in Gaza. Physiotherapist Fadi al-Wadiya, 33, was killed in an Israeli drone attack near an MSF clinic on Gaza City on Tuesday along with five other people, including three children. Al-Wadiya was cycling to work at the time of the Israeli strike. Read more: Israeli drone strike kills sixth MSF member in Gaza.
Bowman loses to Latimer in NYC
In the US, progressive congressman and Israeli critic Jamaal Bowman lost his primary Democratic race to George Latimer, who received heavy funding and support from pro-Israel lobby groups in New York’s 16th Congressional District.
Norway pension fund ends investment with Caterpillar Inc over Israeli military sales
Norway’s largest pension fund, KLP, announced it will no longer invest in the US industrial group Caterpillar Inc due to its sales to the Israeli military, AFP reports. Kiran Aziz, head of responsible investments at KLP, said in a statement:
For a long time, Caterpillar has supplied bulldozers and other equipment that has been used to demolish Palestinian homes and infrastructure to clear the way for Israeli settlements. It has also been alleged that the company’s equipment is being used by the IOF in connection with its military campaign in Gaza following the Hamas attack on Oct 7 last year. There is a risk that it may be contributing to human rights abuses and violation of international law in the West Bank and Gaza. Since Caterpillar has not provided assurances that it is doing anything on this matter, KLP have decided to divest from it.
KLP owned Caterpillar stock valued at Kr728m ($68.6m) earlier in June, which it has now divested.
Niqnaq 